Eatalia – North Strathfield, Italian Restaurant Review

It’s no secret that I love Italian food. The trinity of great pizza, pasta and coffee is one of life’s great culinary pleasures. At least for me anyway. Which is why I was quite excited to try Eatalia in North Strathfield. Their radio ad described it as an authentic Italian restaurant and on their website, Eatalia is likened to restaurants found in Turin or Napoli, with a first class menu and flavour that could make you feel like you’re in the heart of Italy itself! Wow!

Now I know that’s just marketing fluff, but if you’re going to hype up your restaurant that much, at least back it up with great food, but more on that later.

Stepping into Eatalia left me with a great first impression, but it didn’t remind me of restaurants in Napoli or Italy. Not even in the slightest. Having said that, you can’t deny that Eatalia has a beautiful interior. Dark wooden floors, lots of glass and high ceilings with gorgeous chandeliers.

Normally I’d get a Margherita (my favourite type of pizza) but on this occasion we opted for the chicken instead. When it came out, the pizza looked great. Lot’s of colour and a decent size as well. After digging into it, though, I discovered that while the base was great, the toppings were quite bland. Now I know chicken isn’t the ideal ingredient, but I expected more from this pizza.

If you’ve read any of myotherreviews, you’ll know that I love Spaghetti Marinara (or any pasta with red sauce and seafood). Again this dish looked great coming out, but once again, left me incredibly disappointed as I began to eat. For starters, it was nowhere near warm enough. It almost felt like I was eating a dish that had been sitting on the counter for the last half an hour. And in terms of taste, it was very bland. It lacked almost any sort of flavour. What a letdown.

Caffe Latte

Long Black

And when we thought it couldn’t get worse, the coffee came out. Just looking at the two cups of coffee left us both with a sinking feeling. The froth on the latte looked worse than what the Delonghi coffee maker at my work produces. And the Long Black tasted so bad that my mate couldn’t even get through it. Damn.

So what was described as a great, authentic Italian dining experience by their radio ad and website, turned out to be a massive letdown. Like I said before, great marketing is nothing if you don’t invest in the actual food itself. For those looking for Italian restaurants in the North Strathfield area, drive a few kilometers further to Haberfield or Concord instead.

Comments

We value our guests feedback. Since you have been a food lover and likes to read, write and take photos of dishes and beverages, I would like to draw your attention to few other details:
1. You have claimed that you know your taste palate in the Italian cuisine and descriptions of the ingredients, My response to you is you have no clue or even know how to differentiate between Spaghetti and Linguini when it comes to comparisons.
2. Taking photos for your personal use is one thing publishing your comments on the World Wide Web and telling your readers to go to Haberfield for an Italian Meal is absolutely unprofessional and yet it disturbs me as a business operator about your low line comments.
3. I wonder what are your qualifications in the hospitality industry are. That is if you have any?
4. Who made you a reporter or a spy to enter my restaurant and take photos without my consent?
5. Do you have an authority from Canada Bay Council or any Australian Local Council or an Authority from Local, State or Federal government body or agency to carry out these activities and write about businesses?
6. My Restaurant will strive to be among the best restaurants in Sydney, with an authentic Italian Flavour by using the Utmost Italian Products imported from Italy where I am able to prove that to any one, However where is your proof about my food????????????

Let me begin by saying that this blog is simply an avenue for me to express my personal opinion on restaurants that I visit. I don’t claim to be an expert in the culinary field, and as you’ve said, nor do I have any qualifications in this industry. That being said, I am still entitled to my opinion.

If you do a simple search on Google you will notice that there are hundreds of food blogs like this one. Some people love food, and consequently, love expressing their feelings towards recipes, restaurants and so on.

Some review are good, some are bad. My experience at Eatalia was unfortunately bad. Having said that, I have since heard from friends that they’ve had a very positive experience at your restaurant. But like I said before, this blog simply contains my personal experience.

If you follow the link below, you’ll see another review where I had a very positive experience at a restaurant, however, a visitor to this blog commented saying the complete opposite. Opinions on food can quite often be subjective and experiences can sometimes differ from time to time.

I find Jorge’s response to a negative diner experience derogatory and poor form. You certainly don’t value feedback if you are overly defensive and shunning those expressing an opinion. In the hospitality business, one cannot expect to have 100% satisfaction – you need to deal with both sides of the coin.

If you are so concerned about photos of Eatalia’s food up on websites, why don’t you ask every blogger, whether positive or negative opinion, to take theirs down too? I bet you wouldn’t bother with those giving a glowing review… Double standards.

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Eating in Sydney is your guide to restaurants, bars and cafes from across Sydney and beyond. Find reviews, ratings, photos and much more! If you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Personal Disclaimer: Please note that this is a personal food blog. All opinions expressed here are my own personal opinions unless otherwise stated.